Google Updates Google Play Services To Version 6.1 With A Refresh To The Google Fit API

Google Play Services got its next update today, and includes some useful changes for Android developers that should make things easier and above all make it simpler to build on the newest features from Google and optimize apps for the latest things Google has to offer. Presumably, and this is considering if the Android version of the OS doesn't come out before hand, the Google Play Services will be update again at least once before Android L gets an official release. This is because Google has stated that they will be updating Google Play Services on a six week time frame, so if Android L doesn't get released before November then we can probably see some more optimal changes preparing developers for the new software.

What does this update bring? For starters Google made some enhancements to the Drive API making it easier they say for developers to use. A completion events feature has been added in which allows developers to do two things. See when actions are committed to the server and improve on the response time to conflicts made with their app. Google has also incorporated Material Design elements into the File Picker UI and added in recents and starred views. They have also made it possible to organize folders and files using what they're calling a setParents() method.

Google Fit isn't brand new of course but Google has refreshed the API so that developers can now test their new fitness apps on any Android device, they also note that additional changes to the Google Fit API will be made although they don't state when. Lastly Google has also added in Enhanced Ecommerce analytics support from Google Tag Manager, making it easier and much faster for developers to manage and update tags on mobile apps. This will bring Google Play Services up to version 6.1 and Google mentions that it will be rolling out over the next few days, so if you're a developer sit tight and you should see the ability to interact with these new changes soon. Do you develop apps for Android? Do you find these changes useful for the apps that you have published to the Play Store?

Lover of food, craft beer, movies, travel, and all things tech. Video games have always been a passion of his due to their ability to tell incredible stories, and home automation tech is the next big interest, in large part because of the Philips Hue integration with Razer Chroma. Current Device: Google Pixel.